Steve Suther, Certified Angus Beef

When you have just enough cows to name them all, it’s easy to characterize them by appearance, temperament and some might even say personality. Kids like to find names to fit. Twister was one of ours 20 years ago, an outlier for poor docility that left no daughters in the herd.

I used to think multitasking should be a top goal of management here. Within natural systems like forage and cows, lots of things are always going on at the same time. What if I could do enough things correctly and on time to fit those systems together just right?.

It’s fine to have a weekend diversion for fun with your horses, and a source for the next beginning 4-H club project. And it gives you a reason to tow a stock trailer sometimes. But c’mon: You’re just playing, right? You’re not in it to make a profit or improve your herd.

Small cow herds started up 10,000 years ago when the first farmers decided they would rather herd cattle than hunt them. Cows became second nature to farmers over the millennia and made the trip to America with Spanish expeditions more than 500 years ago.

An ideal beef steer is one you can profitably produce again and again, to earn premiums on a value-based grid. That’s the premise Paul Dykstra used in presenting “How to build the perfect steer” at the Angus Means Business National Convention Nov. 2-4..

Let’s say you really like steak. Maybe you’ve known that for decades or you only recently discovered that ideal combination of aroma, tender juiciness and flavor. Either way, this is a time when it costs more than ever to buy a steak, and it’s more likely than ever to be a great experience.

Calving season was the backdrop, starting nine days earlier than expected because one of the calving ease bulls apparently succeeds by transmitting a very short gestation period. Cows were due to start two weeks after the heifers, but one of them calved to that same bull 15 days early.

Calving season was the backdrop, starting nine days earlier than expected because one of the calving ease bulls apparently succeeds by transmitting a very short gestation period. Cows were due to start two weeks after the heifers, but one of them calved to that same bull 15 days early.

Decades of using at least breed-average bulls in the pasture and artificial insemination (AI) on the top half moved their progeny up from 10 percent premium Choice to eight times that. I would not want to start over with any other cows now, but it’s still easy to find a bottom 20 percent in these.

The homestretch is a term borrowed from horse racetracks in the 1800s to describe the final phase of any endeavor. Applying it to calves now suggests weaning is the finish line, although in the big picture we have to realize this is just one of several laps on the track of beef production.

Sometimes people complain that all they ever read or hear in the news is bad. They may blame the messenger: “Why can’t they tell us about all the good things that happened today?” The news people are just doing their job. Things are supposed to go right, so it is only news when they go awry.

Of course, reputation is still part of it, as information is shared and stored very quickly. Oftentimes those buyers may know more about the post-weaning performance of your calves than you do. You want to do all you can to ensure what they know is good news; such a reputation is bound to help your sustainability in the market.

The first calves are supposed to share my birthday in early February, and that means they are supposed to wait until I get back from NCBA. That’s short for the Cattle Industry Annual Convention and National Cattlemen’s Beef Association Tradeshow, held in Nashville, TN, this winter.

Any intact male will provide some variety of calves, all worth more than ever. If they make it through the finishing phase, consumers will eat them all, even though the beef will cost more than ever. If they are disappointed, will they go back to that well?.

Notwithstanding shortterm bullish corrections as heat and drought still pummeled the market, Basse said the long-term outlook pulls corn prices down because of accumulating stocks. Next year, corn may trade as low as $3.25 per bushel, and not exceed $6 for a decade.

Some were all about buying low, selling high and happiest when they beat both their supplier and buyer. But in the mid 1990s, more feeders made new commitments to customer service, reaching out into the country. They wanted “relationships” with producers.

You’ve heard it many times, maybe even said it: “Oh yeah, that’s a no-brainer.” But how can that be when that assessment and comment took conscious thought? I submit there are very few legitimate no-brainers except autonomous functions like breathing..

I’m sure I was supposed to learn responsibility through chicken chores, but I probably needed more motivation. A few pep talks, a bonus of staying up late if the chickens laid 75 percent or more. Maybe even the explanation that this was Mom’s discretionary fund and I could help her.

That’s according to two years of results from the Southern Carcass Improvement Project (SCIP) as presented by an advisor to the demonstration. Tom Brink, president of J&F Oklahoma Holdings, Inc., helped compile a white paper on last fall’s results (www.

No matter how bad or how good a herd is, there’s always a top and bottom end. Therein lies a silver lining. Another 20 percent off the bottom means the surviving genetics are better adapted to producing calves that grow and grade in these stingy conditions.

Statistics show an 8 percent to 10 percent cow culling rate at the markets. But how many don’t make it to the sale? Unfortunately, some death loss is a fact of life on a livestock farm, and the older the cows going through “one more winter,” the more likely some will fit into that statistic.

The calves weaned as heavy as last year despite the drought, and they stayed healthy in the lot. The cows bred back to where I had to sell more just for age to make room for better heifers coming in that would intensify the best of my cow families. It was good for cash flow and genetic improvement.

I dreamed of fresh-smelling rain that beat waves against windows and swept slowly through fields to fill every crack before moving on to refill ponds and kick-start the creeks. Dawn light fell on a full rain gauge.

I dreamed of fresh-smelling rain that beat waves against windows and swept slowly through fields to fill every crack before moving on to refill ponds and kickstart the creeks. Dawn light fell on a full rain gauge.

You may know something because it is stated by a source you consider reliable, even infallible. You could know it because you’re confident of your interpretation of the data about it. Or you might feel the truth of something “in your soul,” as if your own perceptions are infallible; then you look for bits of science to support your beliefs.

The ideas we bring up often include the goal of doing business so that you can profit as well as the next partner in the food chain, and we may even call it “win-win.” Just because you know these concepts does not make them stale from excessive familiarity.

In politics, surveys regularly measure public opinions on issues and candidates so that when the votes are all in and tallied, we filter the score based on how reality fit the projections. A strong second-place finish can be more important than a win based on what we thought would happen.

In the decade since the bovine genome was mapped, the search for practical applications has been a bioscience boom industry. The most recent result can help profitably increase the supply of cattle qualifying for the CAB brand. It comes from a CAB and Angus Genetics Inc.

It takes so many plants to make a stand, cows to make a herd, and drops to make a rain. Before turning that herd out to pasture, you look for enough plant mass to support their grazing. If you're watching a couple of bred heifers for a month, you might as well be watching 20 or 30.

A sub-genre in fiction is called fan fiction. Look it up online and youll see how the interactivity keeps story engines humming as mostly school-age writers explore plot twists, hinges and consequences. Facebook has an interactive fiction game called Farmville.

Records should confirm those mature-weight guesses and, factoring in average weaning weights, point out the most and least efficient cows. Ear tag numbers should convey age at a glance, and the oldest cows have made us the most money.

When you breed or turn out bulls with heifers or cows, you have certain expectations. Ideally, you want each of them to become pregnant, deliver an unassisted, healthy calf, and raise it to half its mommas weight six months later.

As producers, you know how good beef is for you. But you still like to hear people say good things about it, from the aroma to the taste, nutrition and satisfaction. Maybe youre an expert in preparing home-grown cuts for guests, but the people who increased their demand for beef over the last several years probably have less skill.

So our logic filter for criticism is a focal point. Does it let through the social and fad-oriented opinions not backed by science? Does it allow consideration of survey data, still not consistent with science but representing a valid snapshot of what people think?.

No doubt about it, the grill is hot. From the smallest hibachi to the titanic gas rotisserie models, Americans love to fire them up. Summertime sizzles, of course, but some folks even cook steaks under the stars in December. Flashlight and coat are optional, but flavor is a must.

When you breed or turn out bulls with heifers or cows, you have certain expectations. Ideally, you want each of them to become pregnant, deliver an unassisted, healthy calf, and raise it to half its mommas weight six months later.

These ideas are pretty much universal, but lets consider your cowherd. Across the country, cattle are getting better based on trends in daily gain, efficiency and quality grades. For decades, the improvements were uneven, giving up beef quality for better performance on the ranch or feedlot.

If theres one thing beef production cant be, its too predictable. We deal with erratic weather and markets, so dependable profit hangs its hat on cow and calf performance that follows a steady and improving trend line.

When you count your blessings, remember to include the ones disguised as challenges. Some of them you decided to take on as calculated risks; others intruded on your farm or in your life, but turned out to be mixed blessings.

In reality, animal identification has been around since animals were domesticated and will continue as long as we own animals. As soon as the new family dog arrives at home, the discussion turns to naming the new pet, along with the purchase of a collar and tags.

Nows the time many people save money on spring-calving cows. They have just weaned the calves, or perhaps weaned them several weeks ago, so that the cows are in pretty good shape. That would usually be at least body condition score (BCS) 5 to 6, depending on where they live and how much money the owners plan to save on feed.

Get em in the truck, slam the door, wait for the check. How much planning goes into your cattle marketing? Across the country, it varies from long-term contract holders to those who cut out a few head now and then to pay bills. Either extreme can leave money on the table.

Demand for beef is down. Can you blame the recession? Not entirely, but its a darned inconvenient coincidence. Its hard to argue that beef quality was too low, because production of every class of premium beef has been trending up for some time.

Cows cant do math, but their owners should at least do some counting. From financial balance sheets to stocking rates, a precise inventory is a must. Beyond that, you need cows that are worth owning. Cows that matter, that count because of what they can profitably produce.

While your calves are frisking in the sun, the last thing on their minds should be the first thing on yours. The fact that your cows gave birth to calves creates a wellspring of opportunity that can trickle along toward sale day or grow to a profitable river.

Most North American cowherds calve in the ?spring,? very broadly defined as January to May because folks contending with wind chill don?t want to admit they calve in the winter. Spring continues for the first three weeks of June, but we tend to call that summer calving.

These are penny-pinching times. Thermostats and consumer spending are down. People are traveling less and doing without frills. Cattlemen often embrace this conservative spirit, even in the good years. We know that the cattle cycle turns, and favorable prices can only last so long.

As the trailer door clangs shut on a disappointment, there’s time
for a final explanation: “You are a good-looking cow. Your sire
is the most popular, balanced-trait bull we could find. We paid more for
your momma than any other animal on the farm, and you were our son’s
prize 4-H project. But it’s data that counts. With the lowest